As a child, I remember listening to radio dramas with my dad. We listened to The Shadow and The Green Hornet mostly. I guess the dramas were appealing for me because I had a vivid imagination and could easily picture the scenes in my mind … and usually, the scary parts weren’t so scary that I couldn’t handle them, as long as my daddy was right there with me. According to one source, The Shadow didn’t leave the air until December of 1954. When we were listening, I’m not sure we were hearing the original broadcasts or replays from a later time. (Perhaps only the Shadow knows?)
Thinking about today’s 76th anniversary of the War of the Worlds radio broadcast, I was drawn back to those childhood memories. I’ve often imagined what it must have been like to hear the Orson Welles broadcast in 1938 and to imagine – just imagine – it could be real! I know it’s possible (even probable) the hysteria was not as widespread as some accounts made it out to be. Nevertheless, because the drama seemed utterly believable to many, for me that original Sunday night broadcast would have been much scarier than either The Shadow or The Green Hornet! Continue reading “Martian Invasion”